


the constellation of orion ✨ 7-8/12

by fredastaire



Series: ⭐ 12 days of tyrus ⭐ [5]
Category: Andi Mack (TV)
Genre: 12 Days of Tyrus, First Kiss, I RLLY NEED TO STOP WRITING THESE IN MY NOTEBOOK INSTEAD OF ON THE COMPUTER, M/M, OH LORD THIS TOOK ME THE WHOLE DAY TO TYPE UP, Songfic, days 7-8 new yrs eve/complete au, i call this the stargayzing au, i havnt even finished typing up day 6 yet agdhdhfhj, it goes thru a yr of their friendship :D, orion - elizaveta, this is 12 pages long
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-22
Updated: 2018-12-22
Packaged: 2019-09-24 10:09:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,660
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17098622
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fredastaire/pseuds/fredastaire
Summary: Cyrus and TJ build a friendship made out of stars themselves, and it only takes a year.





	the constellation of orion ✨ 7-8/12

_ the constellation of orion  _

_ so bright that night. . . _

****

The first time Cyrus and TJ meet, it’s on the last day of the year. The wind was blowing softly on creaky, empty swings, and neither boy was at home like they’re supposed to be. The sun was setting when they both left their homes quietly, unaware that the other even existed yet. TJ needed a getaway. His parents were loud and fighting and his sister was holed up in her room, refusing to talk to even him. But he gets it, so he leaves. 

****

Cyrus’ family was fine, and they were all gearing up, all jolly for the new year, but Cyrus’ mind was confused and knotted up as he wondered why he feels the way he does. He headed to the park. The walk there was long and lonely, and he felt like the wind was trying to push him away, knock him over. TJ was lost in his mind, and his walk to the park is angrier than the wind. He wished that the next year would bring less fighting, and he wished that he could just stay home like any normal kid. He kicked a rock out of the way as he entered the park. 

****

The sun had set, and the sky was becoming a dark blue. Cyrus made sure to tell his mother that he was going on a walk (the last late evening walk of the year, he called it), but TJ knew that his family would vaguely begin to wonder where he’d gone. Only vaguely, though, and they’d continue with their fighting, and only Amber would actually worry about him. 

****

TJ stops angry-walking through the park. He can hear a voice. The wind is still whistling so he can’t hear all of the words that the voice of singing, but he recognizes the words  _ up _ and  _ down,  _ and it calms him, because he suddenly feels less alone. Then the singing stops, and he hears the same person humming the familiar tune of  _ My Dear Acquaintance (A Happy New Year).  _ TJ walks up to the swings, and sees a boy who doesn’t look much younger than himself at all.

****

“Hello,” he decides to say, and the boy jumps on the swing. He’d been zoned out, or something. 

****

“Hi. I know you,” the boy says, with sudden recognition. TJ tilts his head, doubtfully. Then something clicks in his mind. 

****

“You’re always at our games,” he responds, nodding. 

****

“My best friend plays,” a flicker of something close to anger goes through the boy’s face, and TJ wonders about it, but he shakes it away. “My name is Cyrus, by the way.”

****

“TJ.” 

****

“I know,” the boy - Cyrus - smiles. “Take a seat?” Cyrus offers, gesturing at the swing beside him.” 

****

TJ hasn't been on the swings for a while, but it was New Year’s Eve and he was out of the house wandering around the neighborhood and talking to strangers, so the swings wouldn’t be the most surreal thing about that evening. So he sat down, and swung, slowly, hesitantly. He picked up a little bit of a pace, and looked over at Cyrus, who was sitting with his arms around the chains of the swing, looking down at his hands as he intertwined them, deep in thought. 

****

“What are you doing out here on New Year’s Eve?” TJ asked, surprising even himself. 

****

Cyrus looked at him, and gave him a knowing half-smile. “Probably the same thing as you. Getting away for a bit. I’m not sure what you would have to get away from, though.” 

****

The comment was loose and Cyrus didn’t mean anything malicious by it, but TJ felt a little pang in his heart. Maybe he covers things up  _ too _ well sometimes. He shrugs lightheartedly, “I’ve got home things. Mind things. Things on my mind.” 

****

His words are hardly a grammatically correct sentence, but Cyrus seems to get it. “‘Things on my mind, too. I usually swing them out.” 

****

“Does it work?” TJ asks. 

****

“Usually. Try it.” 

****

So, TJ does. He pushes himself off the ground first, and he notices Cyrus doing the same not much later, and suddenly he’s  _ whoosh _ ing back and forth, and it’s like the air is parting for him. Cyrus goes slower and stays lower, but TJ goes higher and jumps off. Cyrus grins and gives him a “Whoa.” 

****

The evening has become warm and breathless as TJ bends over, and puts his hands on his knees. Cyrus got off his swing, and checked his phone. It’s 9:46. There was approximately 3 hours until the next year started. He felt a little twinge of anxiety at being outside this late, and texted his mother that he would be back within the hour. Before 11. He stood next to TJ, who finally stands up straight and Cyrus sees him for the first time very up close. 

****

“Thanks, I needed that.” TJ said, and Cyrus nodded warmly. And then he looked up at the sky. 

****

There’s always something about the last day of the year that made Cyrus feel anxious and excited all at once. After all, something new  _ was _ starting, but it wasn’t much new at all. There were a whole bunch of futures out there, and it seemed vast. A bit too vast. He looked at TJ again. TJ was very new in Cyrus’ life. The only things he knew about him were that he was on the basketball team, and he wasn’t fond of Buffy, and Buffy wasn’t fond of him. Despite that, though, could  _ he _ be in Cyrus’ future? 

****

And the answer to that question was “ _ who even knows?”,  _ and _ that  _ was the spirit of the New Year.

****

The two felt a bit drawn to each other. Maybe it was because of the very lonely, vulnerable situations they’d met each other in, that made them kind of want to stick together, but maybe it was just the way the wind blew that they coincidentally kept coming near each other until they stuck. Whatever it was, the boys exchanged numbers, and walked home under the light of the constellations. 

****

_ did you know that i was fading? _

_ maybe i was hanging on to find _

_ you’d be there to save me _

_ if i ever fell behind _

****

Coincidentally, or maybe not, Buffy started tutoring TJ the next year. It was begrudging, on both of their ends, and TJ often found himself straight up ignoring the lesson at hand. They weren’t making much progress. The person both Buffy and TJ went to for help was, coincidentally, or maybe not, Cyrus.

****

Buffy was telling Cyrus about this once, and Cyrus was a bit confused. The TJ he’d remembered was pretty vulnerable. But at the same time, Cyrus got it, and understood the walls TJ was putting up. So he told Buffy he’d talk to TJ about it, which Buffy was shocked at, because neither TJ nor Cyrus had felt the need to mention that they knew each other and texted at least a few times every other day. It was a good acquaintanceship, and Cyrus felt himself wanting to spend more time with him. 

****

Cyrus texted TJ about the tutoring situation: 

****

**cy: hey i just heard buffy’s side of the story**

**t.j.: oh lord.**

**cy: give her a chance**

**cy: shes upset that u underestimate her**

**cy: both on the court AND her teaching skills**

**t.j.: i dont underestimate her teaching skills**

**t.j.: meet me @ the swings this evening ill tell u what she said**

****

Cyrus sighed. At least TJ was willing to talk about it, but he seemed frustrated. They hadn’t really seen each other a lot since their meeting in December, either, and most of their communication had become about Buffy problems lately, and Cyrus desperately trying to make them hug and make up. 

****

When Cyrus got to the park at 6:00 PM, TJ was there, kicking at the ground as he swung. Cyrus sat down in the swing next to him, and TJ looked up. 

“There’s nothing wrong with my mind.” TJ announced. 

****

“Of course not.” Cyrus said, looking at TJ, waiting for him to continue. 

****

TJ frowned, and then kept talking. “ _ She _ thinks I have math dyslexia.”

****

“Dyscalculia?”

****

“Yeah. That.” 

****

“Well, it’s not an inherently bad thing to have. It just means your mind is engineered a different way, right?” Cyrus said, doing that thing where you swung in a circle -  _ forward, left, back, right _ .

****

“Even if I do have it, and I don’t, I won’t be able to play basketball, for the rest of my life. Ever again.”

****

Cyrus was sceptical about that. “Why?”

****

“The coach practically kicked me off the team. ‘ _ You can’t play ‘till your grades are up, TJ. _ ’” TJ scoffed. 

****

“You should talk to your parents about it.” TJ shot him a look. “Sorry. Or your teacher.” 

****

TJ sighed frustratedly. “I just don’t  _ want _ anything to be wrong with me, that’s all.”

****

“If you do have dyscalculia, it doesn’t mean anything is wrong with you. I swear, I understand why you would think that. On the day we met, I was thinking there might be something wrong with me, too. But there wasn’t. And there isn’t, for you.” 

****

TJ was silent. And then he nodded. And then he smiled. 

****

_ i know it doesn’t matter _

_ ‘cause i’ll be leaving soon _

_ i’ll try and send you letters _

_ and postcards from the moon _

****

Some time during February, they started meeting at later times. Mostly 8:00 PM and afterwards, because they liked to see the stars. TJ would stand and lean against a wall, trying to look cool, but his face would break out into a goofy grin when Cyrus arrived. They would go walking, or swinging, or Cyrus would lean against the wall, too, and they would turn their heads upwards to look at the stars. 

****

The first time they stargazed together, it was February 19th, and Cyrus looked up first, and TJ followed his gaze. 

****

“Can you see any constellations?” TJ asked, furrowing his brow and tilting his head to try and build an image out of the stars. 

****

Cyrus traced an invisible line through the sky, connecting the stars. “Orion.”

****

“Hm.” TJ said. 

****

They built a game around counting stars and counting off things that happened in their day or things they wanted to talk about. They just wanted to know more. About each other, about the world. This game often devolved into full-fledged conversations, about muffins and deep space and sisters and friends. 

****

And they were friends, but it was on a weird, surreal level. And TJ liked Cyrus. TJ really liked Cyrus. 

****

In March, they moved from weird hangouts to hangouts that were a little bit more normal. Cyrus noticed that TJ made him more daring, TJ noticed that Cyrus made him kinder. It was a fair exchange, and together they were just a little bit out of their comfort zones, and yet so comfortable. TJ apologized to Buffy and treated her better. Cyrus and TJ would laugh and shove each other like any other friends they both had, but they knew it was the tiniest bit different, because they’d met each other on that specific day at that specific time and under those specific stars. 

****

In April, TJ’s father filed for a divorce, and TJ almost disappeared. 

****

It was April 26th when he heard. 

****

“You  _ what _ ?” He heard his mother’s sharp, I-could-cut-diamonds voice ring throughout their home. 

****

“I want a divorce,” he heard his father say, in the calm voice that he’d always loved, but TJ knew that it would only escalate from there. TJ couldn’t say he was surprised about the divorce thing, though. But his stomach twisted when he started hearing them yell at each other, and he hoped this was really the last time he’d have to hear that. 

****

TJ’s mother only came around when his father said something about how  _ “the kids need this” _ . The house was dead silent, and TJ knew that Amber was listening from her room, too. It hadn’t been this quiet in months, maybe years. 

****

It would take 3 months to get the divorce all finalized and all, but TJ’s dad wanted their mother to move out as quickly as possible. 

And she wanted the twins with her. 

****

It was April 27th when Cyrus heard. 

****

“You  _ what _ ?” He said, bringing his swing to a halt. 

****

“I might be moving away.” TJ whispered. It hurt to say. 

****

“Do you know where?” Cyrus asked, worried. 

****

“I don’t know.” TJ looked upwards, at the sky. “The moon, maybe.”

****

Cyrus practically tackled TJ in a hug, to which he responded, “Ow.”

****

They’d both cried in front of each other before, but it was weird this time and they both looked away awkwardly.

****

They were so many things TJ wanted to say. 

****

In May, their parents decided to share custody, and their father would have more time, because his house was closer to Jefferson, anyway. But Cyrus and TJ spent the first 3 weeks of May before TJ’s parents made that decision looking at each other and saying things but not saying the _ things _ . 

****

In June, the divorce was finalized, and things went back to normal between Cyrus and TJ. Mostly. Their gazes on each other lingered a bit, and even though TJ had liked Cyrus for longer, Cyrus’ crush had grown pretty unignorable. 

****

_ your silence is a question _

_ to what i couldn’t say _

_ i see it in your tension _

_ (i wanna kiss you but) i let it slip away _

****

When they had met, Cyrus was struggling with his feelings towards Jonah, but after New Year’s, he’d come out to Buffy, who had made him feel a million times better, bless her soul. He realised that he’d gotten over Jonah some time in March, because he realised he’d only liked an idea of Jonah, and that, even if Jonah wasn’t straight, based on Andi’s experience with him, Cyrus was not ready to date him. So, Cyrus had the tiniest crush on TJ in April, and, as crushes often do, it got pretty obvious in only a manner of weeks. And, due to his horrible bad luck with boys, TJ was moving away at the exact time Cyrus had started liking him. 

****

And now it was June, and TJ wasn’t moving away, but Cyrus’ heart fluttered when he thought about stargazing with him. Come on, stargazing is _ pretty _ romantic. Anyone would get a little bit nervous about doing that with their crush. 

****

Sometimes he and TJ would be leaning against the wall of a building and looking up at the stars, and Cyrus would look over at him and he’d be illuminated by the moonlight, and the silence would stretch until TJ would look back at him, and Cyrus would think about kissing him, and then he would blush and look back at the stars.

****

“Stars are so cool.” TJ would sometimes say. 

****

Yeah, stars. 

****

_ That’s _ really the coolest thing here right now.

****

_ when the shooting stars hit the city lights _

_ i could tell that we would live forever, you and i _

_ standing outside, gazing at the sky; _

_ feeling so alive _

****

And then there was July. July 4th, and the _ stupid _ date (because it was totally a date), and the  _ stupid _ things TJ said.

****

The sun was shining, and TJ was wearing a white t-shirt and green work jacket, sitting in a booth at The Spoon, his sister across from him, inhaling a milkshake. It was a pretty hot day, and they  _ were _ pretty good milkshakes, but TJ merely played with his straw, anxiously. 

****

“Are you going to drink that?” Amber asked. 

****

“Yes.” TJ insisted, taking a single sip from it to demonstrate. 

****

“Okay, sure. Tell me again why we’re ambushing Cyrus?” Amber leaned against her arm, grinning. 

****

TJ whipped his head around to look at her. “We are  _ not _ \- how did you know we were here for Cyrus?” 

****

“I didn’t, but I guess I know now.” 

****

TJ scoffed, and went back to staring at the door. Maybe they  _ were _ ambushing Cyrus, just a little bit. “Look, I’m going to ask him to come with me to the fireworks thing today.”

****

Amber gasped. “A date? You’re asking him on a date?” 

****

“No. Kind of.” TJ put his face in his hands, groaning. “It’s going to be a friendly date, though,” he said, voice muffled. 

****

That’s when Cyrus walked in, right after Andi, and followed by Buffy, and it was like one of those slow-mo scenes in movies where the prettiest girl in the  _ whole school  _ walks in, and everyone’s staring, except it was the prettiest boy and TJ was the only one staring. 

****

“Stop staring.” Amber said, after managing to drag his milkshake out of his hands and replace his straw with her own. 

****

“Right, yeah,” he looked back down at the table. He could hear Andi’s voice chattering away, and out of the corner of his eye he saw the three of them sit down. He stood up, and it felt like he was watching himself from above. He practically dragged himself over to their table. 

****

“Hey, guys,” he said, only allowing himself to glance at Cyrus once. 

****

“Hi, TJ?” Buffy said. They were on good terms now, obviously, but she always seemed a bit suspicious of him. She probably had an idea of how he felt about Cyrus. 

****

TJ finally turned to actually look at Cyrus. “So, uh, was wondering, doyouwannacomeseethefireworkswithme?” He didn’t mean to say it that quickly. Oh, God. What if he didn’t hear? TJ didn’t think he would be able to repeat it. 

****

Cyrus, thankfully, had heard it. He looked at Andi and Buffy, then at TJ, and he seemed shocked, but he managed to say “sure?” 

****

TJ gave Amber the hardest high five ever. 

****

Cyrus and TJ arrived early to the field where they were going to be showing the fireworks. It was behind a few buildings, so TJ tried his cool pose again, hands in his pant pockets. Cyrus gave him an amused look. They had addressed the cool pose before, and Cyrus thought it was pretty funny. TJ just stuck his tongue out at him and turned to the stars. 

****

“Where’s your Orion guy?” He asked. 

****

“He’s over there. Just hangin’ out.” Cyrus said. 

****

At that moment, as they gazed at the sky, a shooting star blinked in and blinked out. TJ, without thinking, wished for Cyrus. He looked over at the boy in question. “What’d you wish for?” He asked. 

****

Cyrus moved closer, so that their shoulders were touching. “‘Can’t tell you,” he said, softly, “That’s between me and the stars.”

****

TJ’s heart was hammering and for no reason at all, he said, “Maybe I’ll be an astronaut, then.” 

****

Cyrus looked up at him. “Maybe I will be, too.” 

****

TJ’s heart said “ _ astronaut boyfriends _ ”. TJ told it to shut up.

****

Then, the fireworks started. TJ almost jumped when he heard the first one. It decorated the sky with its green aftermath, and if TJ’s heart hadn’t been at the capacity of how fast a human heartrate could go, it would’ve gone faster as he felt the adrenaline that so often comes with fireworks. People around them seemed excited too, and most of all, Cyrus, who was grinning at the sky as if it was the best thing he’d ever seen. Cyrus looked over at him, probably having noticed him staring, and he grabbed his hand. 

****

TJ would chalk this up to just pure adrenaline, but it still made him blush, but he clutched Cyrus’ hand as if it was the only thing keeping him afloat and watched the next firework explode. They were loud, and no one could hear anyone else, and no one really wanted to hear anyone else. So he yelled. He yelled to the fireworks, but really to the stars, but really to Cyrus, “I wished for you!”

****

And no one heard, but Cyrus gave him the nicest smile when it was all over. 

****

_ still waiting, hoping _

_ for you tonight _

_ im getting tired of trying _

****

Cyrus told Buffy about his crush in August, who then mentioned it to Andi, and neither of them were surprised at all. He had to be honest, though. Having a crush was tiring. He’d had this one for, what, six months? But every time he thought he might say something about it to TJ, the words got stuck in his throat. Buffy said he  _ totally _ liked him back, but even if it was true, he’d never done this before. And how would his parents feel? Oh, God, his parents. 

****

He would spend nights awake thinking about this. Staring out the window, looking at the stars. The stars always reminded him of TJ. They did a lot of things together, they were pretty close friends now, but the stars would always be their thing. Each star was a glittering memory of TJ, and there were so many. 

****

When he was awake late, he would text TJ. Little, random things, like “mint chocolate muffins exist and i haven’t ever had one” and TJ would respond, “go to sleep astronaut”, because he knew that Cyrus was looking at the stars, because when  _ wasn’t _ he?

****

The new school year was starting, which meant Cyrus would spend too much time thinking about TJ during class. But it did mean TJ would be around more. During the summer, half the time he was with his mother, and the other half he was helping do chores, or “hold down the fort”, as his father called it. 

****

TJ and Cyrus had done a bunch that summer that Cyrus didn’t think he’d ever do. He had ran to catch up with TJ so much that it was _ almost _ like exercise. Maybe gym class would be easier this year. 

****

When September came, he realised his hunch about how the school year would go with his crush was true. He had to physically resist the urge to glance at TJ’s seat in the classes that they shared, and although it was easy to keep him out of his mind with math equations and history knowledge, he did sneak into Cyrus’ mind. Sometimes. At lunch, TJ sat with them, which made Cyrus smile a lot. 

****

During the end of September and the beginning of October, as the days got chillier and they became a bit more reluctant to go outside at night, they picked up a habit of long late night phone calls as they watched the stars from their windows, and it wasn’t exactly the same, but Cyrus would pick out Orion in the stars, and TJ would pick him out too, like Cyrus had taught him, and Cyrus would smile. 

****

As the Halloween craze picked up speed, Cyrus went for their yearly costume shopping with Andi and Buffy. They’d all gone as zombies the previous year, and 3 peas in a pod the year before that (that was  _ impossible _ to move in), so, they had a bit of a matching costumes streak and they wanted to keep it.

****

TJ and Cyrus promised each other that they wouldn’t tell the other what their costume was, which would save Cyrus a whole bunch of embarrassment. 

****

On Halloween, he showed up with Andi and Buffy as Alvin and the Chipmunks (he was Simon) and TJ bent over laughing. 

****

TJ wasn’t much better, though, in his Lumiere costume. 

****

It was a good Halloween. 

****

_ my destination's glittering up high. . . _

****

In late November, it started to snow. 

****

TJ never really liked snowflakes that much. 

Until, as they talked on the phone one Tuesday and it started to snow, Cyrus let out a gasp, and TJ asked why he liked snow so much. 

****

Cyrus said they looked like stars fallen. TJ caught some in his hand a few weeks later and knew he was right. 

****

The stars looked a lot prettier in winter, too. A little bit more alive. 

****

TJ was so grateful he got to spend most of the holiday season with his father that year. 

****

_ the constellation of orion _

_ is where im going to fly . . . _

****

TJ couldn’t believe he’d known Cyrus for almost a year. It was December now. They went to the swings again occasionally, but the stars were really what they were in it for. And each other, he supposed. 

****

He hadn’t said anything about his crush yet, and he’d had it almost since they’d first met. It was going to drive him insane. Cyrus could be so oblivious sometimes. 

****

And then it was the last day of the year. Both boys were at home, thinking about each other. Neither of them were where they were supposed to be, which was together. Neither of them knew how to make the first move, and the months were just dragging on and the moments were enough to fill the sky, but they needed to connect things, to make that final push. A final star in a huge constellation. 

****

They decided to go the one place they knew how to get away from their feelings with. 

****

On Cyrus’ walk there, he thought about how he’d done this exactly a year ago. Fretting about a different boy, doubting himself again, a year later. Except Cyrus and TJ’s friendship anniversary had passed hours ago. When they’d met, all those months ago, it had been earlier. The stars had just started to come out. Now, it was 11:30 PM. 

****

Cyrus’ parents were most definitely not going to be happy, but there was something boiling inside him. He would deal with that later. 

****

Cyrus slipped into the creaky swing, and looked up at the sky. 

****

Stars, and nothing but stars. 

****

Tears began to well in his eyes. The stars got blurrier and merged with one another. 

****

“Cyrus?” A puff of warm air left TJ’s mouth when he spoke, looking at the dark outline of another person on the swings. His heart beat hard in his chest, He hadn’t meant to find the other boy here, but he couldn’t help but think that maybe the stars had just aligned for them like that. 

“TJ.” Cyrus croaked, and turned to give him a half-hearted smile as he wiped a tear off his face. “Take a seat.”

****

TJ wasn’t one to argue with Cyrus. He took a seat, and let himself swing gently. “Were you crying?” He asked, softly. 

****

Cyrus shrugged, “Maybe.” 

****

They sat in silence, not looking at one another, but they could both tell that the other was looking at the stars. 

****

“TJ, I don’t think I’ve ever told you why I was here last year.” Cyrus said.

****

“No, you haven’t.” TJ said, watching his breath on the cold air. 

****

“It was a crush.” 

****

TJ froze. Cyrus had a crush, he’d had one since before he’d known TJ. Okay. 

****

“It was Jonah.” 

****

Okay.  _ Okay _ . 

****

“I think I might be gay.” 

****

TJ didn’t know what forced it out of him, but he responded, “I think I might be gay, too.” 

****

Cyrus was shocked. TJ could tell without looking at him. 

****

“And,” he looked at Cyrus, who was looking at his hands again. He couldn’t tell that Cyrus’ heart was hammering in his chest just like his was. “I like you, Cyrus.” 

****

Cyrus had wanted to be the one to confess, but this worked, too. 

****

“Oh,” he said, still shocked. 

****

TJ stood up right away, and went to walk away, but Cyrus grabbed his hand. 

****

“Wait,  _ no,”  _ he said, pulling TJ back. “You don’t get it, TJ. I like y-”

****

**12:00 AM.**

****

Fireworks. 

Lips on his. 

****

A kiss. Kiss back. 

****

Cyrus intertwined his hand with TJ’s, and pulled away as the aftermath of a firework faded behind them. “-ou too,” he finished. 

****

They looked at each other for a few moments, figuring it all out in their heads. And then Cyrus looked upwards, at the stars again. He raised a finger to trace them. 

****

“Look. There’s Orion.”

****

_ so if you ever miss me _

_ just look up _

_ look up to the sky _


End file.
